


if you leave before the start

by Estelle



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Professors, First Kiss, Fox Stiles Stilinski, Getting Together, M/M, Pining, Scenting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:28:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,661
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27881494
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Estelle/pseuds/Estelle
Summary: Ever since Professor Stilinski has joined their university department, Derek feels like he's losing his mind. It's not that he doesn't like Stiles - quite the opposite - it's just that he smells different than anyone he's ever met, and Derek can't figure out why. And his massive crush on the new professor certainly isn't helping.
Relationships: Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski
Comments: 12
Kudos: 154
Collections: The Sterek Secret Santa - Edition 2020





	if you leave before the start

**Author's Note:**

  * For [the_problem_with_stardust](https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_problem_with_stardust/gifts).



> Happy holidays! You asked for Professors AU and Fox!Stiles, and I hope you'll like it!
> 
> When I used a title generator to find one for this (because titles are the worst!), one suggestion was " Look Stiles, are you going to Pine With Me or Not?" and I almost used that XD

Derek felt like he was losing his mind. It had all started when Professor Stilinski - _no please call me Stiles_ \- had joined their university department. He was the new philosophy professor, and Derek had even heard about his work in passing and thought it wasn’t half bad, so he certainly was a good addition to their team.  
It quickly turned out that he was great with the students too, nice and friendly and enthusiastic about his lectures, but just strict enough and tolerating no nonsense, so that he was respected and highly popular.  
The problem was that he smelled _different_. Derek couldn’t even really describe it, which was definitely saying something. It was a mix of spices and something musky, just not quite human, but also most definitely not a wolf.  
Derek caught it whenever Stiles was close, which happened surprisingly often considering that they didn’t even teach the same subject, and it wasn’t that it was a bad smell, quite the opposite if he was being honest. He just couldn’t figure it out, and that was slowly driving him insane.  
He certainly couldn’t just _ask_ , even though they _had_ become friends during the months since Stiles had joined the department, largely thanks to Stiles’ initiative of course.  
They regularly had lunch together, and Stiles sometimes hung out in his office, saying that he could concentrate better with company, and Derek would roll his eyes and pretend to be annoyed, but secretly he was pleased that it was his company that Stiles sought out. 

“You’re staring again”, Erica pointed out, sitting down in the cafeteria seat next to him. She was his TA, and a beta in his pack, and probably the person he confided in most.  
Derek looked at her, then back to Stiles, who was across the room talking to some students, smiling and gesturing wildly.  
“I know.” He sighed, not even trying to deny it. “He’s just… You really don’t notice it?”  
They’d had this conversation several times already, but he couldn’t help but ask again.  
Erica shrugged. “I don’t know. Humans all smell different to me. I don’t know what I’m supposed to notice here. I think…” She pretended to look thoughtful, tapping a finger against her lip. “It’s just your massive crush showing.”  
Derek frowned. “I’m not… No, I don’t think that’s it.”  
“Oh come on! Don’t even try to deny it!” Erica was grinning like the cat who got the cream, and Derek sighed.  
“I’m not denying… _that_.” He could feel his face and ears warm up at the confession. “I just don’t think that’s what makes him smell different.”  
“Whatever you say.” Still grinning, Erica stole a piece of bread from his plate. “At least you’re admitting _something_ , so I’ll take that for now.”

Later that afternoon, Derek was working in his office when Stiles barged in with an enthusiastic “Dereeeeeek!”  
He never knocked when he knew that Derek wasn’t holding office hours for students, and Derek just couldn’t bring himself to ask him to, having already grown accustomed to Stiles just inviting himself in.  
He looked up from his papers, frowning just a little, because apart from happy and excited, Stiles smelled a little nervous, and Derek didn’t know what to do with that.  
“Holy shit! You’re wearing _glasses_ ”, was what Stiles said next, and Derek’s frown deepened.  
Stiles’ already frantic heartbeat skipped a beat, and that was another thing that always gave Derek pause. Stiles’ heartbeat wasn’t quite like a human’s, always beating just a little too fast, and Derek had chalked it up to Stiles’ energy and general restlessness, but in situations like this, he wasn’t all that sure anymore.  
He self-consciously touched the thick brown frame. Of course he didn’t actually need them, but Erica and Isaac had both insisted, saying that it would add to his “professor vibes”, whatever that meant.  
Now he doubted that listening to them had been a good idea, but then Stiles quickly shook his head.  
“No, no, you look good! I mean, they look good! I mean, I didn’t know you wore glasses! They suit you! Not that you don’t look great anyway, but uhm, yeah, shutting up now.”  
Amused, and trying not to show how much that compliment meant to him, Derek allowed himself to smile at Stiles, causing another slight skip in his heartbeat.  
“Anyway, I wanted to ask you something”, he continued then, and the lemon-sharp scent of nervousness was back, causing Derek’s frown to return aswell.  
“So, I’m going to this conference next weekend, right? And I just learned that this guy I was in highschool with will be there too. And he’s a real asshole, he really is!”  
Stiles was gesturing wildly again, and Derek suppressed a smile, wondering where this was going.  
“But he’s a big fan of yours”, Stiles continued. “And I thought it would be super cool if I showed up with you, you know, to show him that I have _awesome_ friends, and he will be so jealous, and uhm, yeah, the hotel is already paid for, and you can have a nice weekend?”, he finished a little uncertainly, as if Derek hadn’t already been convinced at spending the weekend with Stiles.  
“Okay”, he replied.  
“There’ll be free food too and… wait, what?” Stiles stared at him, and Derek smiled just a little at his obvious surprise.  
“I don’t have any plans that weekend, and philosophy might not really be my subject, but it’s still interesting, so yeah, why not”, he confirmed.  
“Oh my god, thank you!” Stiles rushed forward, then stopped short just next to Derek, his arm now awkwardly hovering over his back, the smell of nervousness quickly filling the room again.  
“It’s okay, you can hug me if you want.” Derek looked up at Stiles, trying not to show how much he liked the idea.  
Stiles hesitated for a second longer, then he threw his arms around Derek’s neck, his face pressing into the crook of his neck and his rabbit-quick heartbeat clearly palpable against his shoulder.  
Derek put his arm around Stiles’ waist, returning the hug, the angle just a little awkward, but being so close to Stiles definitely made up for it. He revelled in his warmth and his scent, spices and happiness and just a hint of arousal, that Derek valiantly chose to ignore, not entirely sure if that wasn’t his own, or maybe just wishful thinking altogether.  
After a moment, Stiles pulled back, smiling brightly. “Thank you Derek, really! I owe you one.”  
Derek shrugged. “It’s fine. That’s what friends do, right?”  
When Stiles nodded, he desperately tried to ignore the little voice in his head telling him that it definitely wasn’t just friendship that he was after.

They arrived at the conference center on Friday evening, when a reception was being held.  
Stiles easily flitted from group to group, greeting friends and chatting with his peers, and Derek was happy to trail along, even if he could see the confused and sometimes downright judgemental looks some people shot him.  
After a while they came face to face with a couple that Stiles apparently knew quite well, judging by the enthusiastic way with which he hugged the beautiful redhead. He then nodded at the guy, and slightly turned to Derek.  
“This are Lydia and Jackson. And this is Derek.”  
Derek held out his hand to greet them, and Lydia took it, which was when he noticed that she smelled of strawberries and chocolate and something else he had never encountered.  
Before he could think about it further though, he noticed that Jackson was just staring at him in shock.  
“You’re Professor Hale!”, he exclaimed, and Derek suppressed a grin.  
A look at Stiles’ smug expression confirmed that this was the “asshole” he had been talking about.  
“Why are you here? Oh my god, that sounded rude! I mean, I’m a big fan of your work, just, this isn’t exactly a history conference.”  
He was obviously flustered, and Derek was certain that Stiles was enjoying every second of this.  
“Stiles invited me”, he explained, and Jackson looked even more shocked.  
“But why?”  
Derek just raised his eyebrows, deliberately leaning a little closer to Stiles, and Jackson’s mouth fell open.  
“Come on, let’s get you a drink”, Lydia chimed in, clearly amused, and began stirring him away towards the bar.  
As soon as they were out of earshot, Stiles started laughing.  
“Oh my god, Derek, that was awesome!”  
Derek shrugged. “You do know that they very likely think we’re dating, right?”  
“Even better! Jackson will never get over me landing _you_ of all people!”  
He was still grinning, but then something seemed to occur to him, his scent turning citrusy with nerves once again.  
“Wait, you don’t mind, do you? I can go tell them you’re straight, that we’re just friends, that…”  
He trailed off when Derek placed his hand on his shoulder.  
“Stiles, calm down. I don’t mind. It’s okay that they think we’re dating.” _Okay_ being the understatement of the century of course, but that wasn’t a train of thought he should follow right now. “And besides, I’m most definitely not straight.”  
“Oh. _Oh_! That’s good.” Stiles was nodding frantically, his scent turning happy and… hopeful? “Me neither.”  
Derek snorted, trying to make light of it and ignoring the way his heart fluttered at the confirmation that he had, _theoretically_ , a chance. “Yeah, I gathered that much.”  
“Okay, great! How, though?”  
Stiles looked half relieved and half suspicious, which was an interesting combination, and Derek raised his eyebrows.  
“Your friends, who you’ve clearly known for a long time, weren’t at all surprised that you’re dating a guy? Just that it’s me specifically?”, he offered.  
“Ah yeah, sure, makes sense.” Stiles nodded. “ _Right_. Drinks?”

It was late when the reception ended and they finally went to their rooms. Derek wasn’t sure if he was disappointed or relieved that they had been assigned separate rooms, and he was even less sure what Stiles thought about all of this. He has been half happy and half nervous the whole evening, and the drinks he’d had made him even chattier than usual, until they stopped in front of his room.  
“Right, yeah, good night, I guess?” Stiles was smiling up at him brightly, and Derek couldn't help but smile back.  
“Good night, Stiles.”  
For a moment, they were just looking at each other, and Derek knew that he should leave already, but then Stiles stepped forward just a little, his gaze flitting to Derek’s lips, and was this it? It was happening, right? Derek wasn’t imagining this?  
He leaned in aswell, reaching out to place his hands on Stiles’ hips, but right before he could touch him, Stiles jerked back, his scent turning sour.  
“Okay, good night!”, he said quickly, too loud in the quiet corridor, and vanished into his room.  
Derek just stood there, staring at the door dumbly, disappointment cursing through him.  
_Of course_ he’d read that wrong. _Of course_ Stiles wasn’t interested. _Of course_ that had just been his wishful thinking.  
Stiles had probably just swayed because of the alcohol he’d had, and now Derek had made him uncomfortable with his stupid, unnecessary feelings.  
Sighing deeply, he finally went to his room, prepared to bury his useless crush as deep as he could, so that he wouldn’t ruin their friendship.

The rest of the conference passed uneventfully. Stiles didn’t bring up the incident, treating him the same way he always did, and Derek was grateful for the out, trying to be content with being friends, and not letting his feelings get in the way of that.

A few weeks later, Derek was leaving his office close to midnight. He hadn’t realised how late it had gotten, too engrossed in a research paper he was reading. He didn’t mind crossing the campus at night though, it wasn’t like there were a lot of things that could be a serious threat to him after all.  
He had almost reached the parking lot when he heard noises from the nearby patch of trees. It didn’t sound like a party, more like a fight, and he was instantly on alert.  
Moving closer through the shadows of the trees, he found the scene easily, and almost let out a shout at what he saw.  
Stiles was pressed against a tree, and what Derek identified as a chimera was advancing on him. He made a mental note to investigate that later, since they were supposed to be extinct in Northern America, but right now, there were more pressing matters to attend to.  
His eyes glowing red, he stepped out from behind a tree to place himself in front of Stiles and draw the fight towards him, when suddenly, Stiles started to glow in a brilliant blue, and lightning struck the chimera. The beast let out a shriek and took off, probably deciding that Stiles wasn’t easy prey after all.  
Derek would have to track it down later, but right now, he could only stare at Stiles, who whirled around with wide eyes.  
The chlorine and sulfur smell of lightning hung in the air, and finally, everything made sense.  
There was only one being who had magic like that after all. Not even witches and mages could call upon lightning.  
“You’re a fox!”, he declared, and Stiles looked even more shocked.  
“Finally, it makes sense. I thought I was going insane”, he continued, and Stiles finally reacted.  
“What? How?”  
“You don’t smell human, and I just couldn’t figure it out”, Derek explained, like it was obvious.  
“I don’t _smell human_? Derek, what the fuck?” Stiles started to sound a little pissed, and Derek realised something.  
“Oh, right, sorry.” Letting his eyes change colour again, and showing his canines with a wide grin, he stated, “I’m a werewolf. So my sense of smell is a little more developed, and like I said, you don’t smell completely human, but I had never met a fox before, so I couldn’t figure it out, and Erica certainly wasn’t any help.”  
“Okay, okay, wait!” Stiles shook his head, pacing in front of him, and Derek hoped that that wasn’t a bad sign.  
“You’re a werewolf?”  
Derek nodded.  
“And Erica is too?”  
He nodded again.  
“And you can _smell me_?” His voice went a little higher at that, and Derek got a little nervous.  
“Well, yes, but it’s not like…”  
But Stiles interrupted him. “That night at the conference, did you want to kiss me?”  
“What?” How did they get to discussing _that_?  
Stiles stopped in front of him, his eyes narrowed and his arms crossed. “Did you?”  
Derek sighed. Might aswell get that over with. “Yes.”  
“Oh. And do you still want to?” Stiles stepped a little closer, his shoulders losing some of the tension he was holding, and the lingering scent of lightning could quite mask the cotton candy sweet smell of hope.  
“Yes”, he admitted. “But I know you don’t want that, so I don’t see the point in talking about it.”  
“No, wait!” Stiles rushed forward and took Derek’s hands, his heartbeat even more frantic than usual. “I do want that.”  
Derek frowned. “But at the conference…”  
“I know.” Stiles looked at their hands for a moment, then back up. “I thought you were human, and even though I like you. A lot, even. Like, _really_ ”, he emphasised, squeezing his hands, and Derek had to grin. “Dating a human is always so _complicated_.”  
Derek nodded, and Stiles smiled. “But now…” He leaned in a little. “Can I have another chance?”  
For a second, Derek pretended to think about it, then he smiled and captured Stiles’ lips in a soft kiss.  
With a small gasp that Derek shamelessly used to deepen the kiss, Stiles wound his hands through his hair, and Derek pulled him even closer by the hips, and the resulting scent of lightning, spices and happiness mingling made for the most perfect combination Derek had ever experienced.


End file.
